SMU Hires a Tar Heel

You should know I’m a Tar Heel basketball fan. So, I’m down with SMU hiring Matt Doherty as the new men’s basketball coach.

I still think Jimmy Tubbs got a raw deal and was forced out over some junk. I think Jim Copeland was as terrible A.D. and only good things can happen now that he’s on the way out.

Matt was a passionate player and coach. It’s a shame the Carolina job ended for him the way it did. Lots of fingers were pointed his way but I truly think Matt’s a better coach for it.

The Tar Heel family ate one of their own and no one should ever feel good about what happened. Roy Williams won a national title, so Carolina was right, Matt wasn’t the right guy.

Ray Felton, Sean May, and Rashad McCants were players Doherty brought to Chapel Hill. Those fellas won the national title in 2005 and became NBA first round draft picks.

That’s what Doherty can sell recruits. He can get them to the NBA. That is what guys want to hear.

The man’s resume is incredible. He won Dean Smith his first national title as a starter for Carolina 1982. Michael Jordan and James Worthy were his teammates.

He was an assistant at Kansas under Roy Williams for 7 years. He was a head coach at Notre Dame in 1999 before leaving for North Carolina.

Now SMU has to spend some money. They haven’t put any real cash into the program.

They also have to find a way to make it easier for player to get in. Sorry, folks in Conference USA, schools like Houston, UTEP, UAB, and Memphis can get anybody in. SMU can keep on trying to act like Harvard, but if you want to win, you have to be able to get kids in.